House-Elves and Tents
by Skyflapple
Summary: My entry for the QLFC Season 4 Round 1. Barty Crouch, Jr spends some time with Winky and Barty Crouch, Sr before the events at the Quidditch World Cup.
**This is my entry for Round 1 of the QLFC Season 4. I play Keeper for the Caerphilly Catapults. For this round, my assignment was:** to select a (willing) Death Eater and write about them being with their family.

 **This story is AU**

* * *

The bedroom of Barty Crouch, Junior, was almost exactly identical to the way it had looked when he was still at Hogwarts, even after all these years. The room was still decorated in the colours of Ravenclaw House, with sleek, black furnishings. The magnificent four-poster bed was carved with soaring and swooping eagles; the largest of all of these carvings hovered on the headboard, wings outstretched, over the sleeping figure in the bed.

Slowly, Barty began to wake. His eyes opened slowly, and his hands drifted over the pillow without a care in the world. Eventually he propped himself up on his elbows and then slid out of bed. He then made his way past his packed suitcase, which sat beside his bed, to his wardrobe and dressed in a black leather cloak and jeans the colour of charcoal. After brushing his teeth, he dropped into an armchair by the window to wait.

Nearly half an hour went by before there was a knock on the door and it opened to reveal Winky, who was dressed in a fresh tea towel, her enormous brown eyes shining with excitement. She gave him a small bow, and said, "Your father is sending Winky to fetch you, Master Barty, sir. He is saying it is time to leave for the campsite." The elf stood still and waited for Barty to reply.

"Inform him that I will be down shortly," replied Barty. "Also, take the suitcase with you when you leave, it is too heavy to carry."

Winky paused, started to say something, stopped, and then said in a great rush, "Winky would like to tell Master Barty that she wishes for him to enjoy himself on holiday, and that she will be looking after Master Barty when he is there."

"Why, thank you, Winky. It is because of you that I am even going to the Quidditch World Cup and I must express my gratitude."

The little house-elf beamed, then she, and the suitcase disappeared with a loud crack, and Barty rose sleepily from his chair. He crossed to where Winky had been and turned to survey the room before opening the door and descending the stairs to find his father waiting for him. His expression suggested that he was not in a good mood, and Barty wondered what he had done this time to make him angry. His father kept finding fault with everything he did, ever since he was arrested for torturing Frank and Alice Longbottom. It was getting rather tiresome.

However, he wanted to be on good terms with his father today, even if it didn't last. So he smiled and politely asked what was wrong.

Father said irritably, "Bagman is showing no respect for the Statute of Secrecy, strolling around the campsites in his Quidditch robes, yelling at the top of his voice about Quaffles and Wronski Feints! Anyway, we have to go now. I have business I need to attend to at one of the campsites. Put on your Cloak! Just because you are allowed out doesn't mean you can abandon all discretion!"

Barty obeyed, thinking that if nothing else, it was a refreshing change that he hadn't made his father angry for once.

* * *

The campsite was captivating for Barty. He hadn't been outside the family estate since he had come back from Azkaban disguised as his mother, and all the sounds and smells of the fields of tents fascinated him. He spotted a few extravagant tents amongst the blur of canvas, and they were all thrilling. There was one that was shaped like a castle turret from Muggle fairy tales, and another that resembled an ancient Egyptian pyramid, and took up the same amount of space as four regular tents did on its own.

Barty hovered silently under his Invisibility Cloak between his father and Winky as they hiked across the campsite for nearly forty-five minutes before arriving at their designated plot of land next to the other officials' tents. They pitched their tent with the help of a discreet spell and went inside. It resembled a medium-sized flat, complete with a wardrobe and a fully functional kitchen.

Father, who had miraculously managed to keep his suit immaculate despite the long trek through the mud, informed Winky and Barty that he was going to attend to the business he had been complaining about earlier that day. Before he left, however, he gave Winky strict orders to stay close to Barty and make sure he stayed out of trouble. He also told Barty that under no circumstances would he be allowed to remove his Invisibility Cloak, nor could he leave the tent without Winky, who received these orders as well.

After Father had disappeared to who-knows-where, Winky set to making some food whilst Barty explored the tent properly. It wasn't the tent they used to have when the Crouches went camping before Father got his promotion and Barty got arrested. It was the same size, with the same number of bedrooms, a kitchen, and so on, but Barty thought it felt quite different.

Barty entered his bedroom, sat on the bed, and remembered his mother. The scent of sweet peas that he always associated with her, the way her cheeks crinkled when she smiled, and how she always spoke kindly to him, how she loved him despite all that had happened.

"Master Barty? Winky has made lunch for you." Barty looked up, and noticed Winky staring down at him. He sighed in a relaxed way and followed her to the plate of fried eggs and chips waiting for him on the kitchen counter. His mouth watered, and he realised that it was the first thing he'd eaten all day.

"Master Barty must be starving," said Winky as she pulled out a chair for him. "Is Master Barty excited for the match?"

Barty said nothing for a moment, but watched her fussing as she tidied the kitchen. "Thank you, Winky," he said.

Winky looked up in surprise, and then bowed with a smile. "Anything Master Barty needs, Winky is happy to serve her family. Don't let it get cold, Master Barty!"

She pointed at his plate, and Barty began to tuck in to his meal.


End file.
